Britons with second homes overseas are to become targets to save millions of
pounds in tax evasion.

A team of HM Revenue and Customs inspectors is looking at people with second homes in France, Spain and other holiday destinations to see if they are cheating the taxman.

The inspectors have been told to claw back £560million in lost revenue by 2015.

The 200-strong team will be scrutinising advertisements placed by second home owners in magazines and on the internet. They will be looking for undeclared holiday rents and leased office space.

They are also checking overseas land registers to identify taxpayers with properties abroad.

The move is part of a campaign against evasion by the 330,000 richest individuals in the 50 per cent tax bracket who earn more than £150,000 a year. The revenue’s first targets are second home owners because holiday homes are seen as a common way for well-off people to hide a second income from the taxman.

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They will also be looking for Britons who receive undeclared rent by leasing land overseas to local companies.

David Gauke, the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, said: “The message is clear: there is no hiding place for tax cheats. The Government is committed to tackling tax evasion.”

HMRC said the team would look at the work of commodity traders and people holding offshore accounts.

Experts said people with second homes abroad should check that their tax affairs were in order.

Gary Ashford, the head of investigations at RSM Tenon, said: “Taxes involving overseas properties can always be potentially complicated. It is not always the case that people have deliberately evaded their taxes. However, HMRC could target them whether or not they have intended to do anything wrong.”

The team will work with other inspectors who focus on companies, residence and domicile issues, and trusts and estates to crack down on evasion.

In a further blow for people with two houses, Eric Pickles, the Local Government Secretary, confirmed plans to allow local authorities to end a council tax discount for people with second homes.

Council tax relief on second homes in England and Wales topped £45 million last year. Under Mr Pickles’s plans, town hall bosses could scrap the relief.

Stephen Gilbert, a Liberal Democrat MP, told the Commons that councils should be given the power to limit the number of holiday properties in their area.